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Exploring the public service path

USC Gould School of Law • October 17, 2008
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Students learn about public service opportunities and resources at USC Law

—By Lori Craig

USC Law students prove, time and again, that they can make a palpable difference in the world.

In the past few years, among other efforts, they have started up Legal Aid Alternative Breaks, a service group that annually travels to the Gulf Coast and Mexico, and launched Empowerment Day, a program to introduce neighborhood secondary students to the world of law school.

The Office of Public Service was instrumental in these and many other projects, and its staff wants students to know they are ready and willing to help.

Exploring the Public Service Path“So many of our students have come to law school with a desire to promote social justice and we want to foster and support that throughout their time at the law school and beyond,” said Malissa Barnwell Scott, student programs advisor.

Scott and the other members of OPS — Associate Dean Lisa Mead, Adjunct Externship Professor Nancy Cervantes and several student workers — held an OPS orientation for students during lunch Oct. 2. The office coordinates external service learning, externships, pro bono and community service, as well as other student-driven projects.

At the orientation event, Barnwell Scott encouraged any student interested in public service — whether pro bono work or non-legal work such as community service — to pursue that goal.

The event featured an alumna and a current student who are heavily involved in service work and who are familiar with the assistance OPS offers.

“I guarantee your law school experience will be a lot more interesting if you do something outside the classroom,” said Doreen Anthony ’08, who as a student organized a community law fair to bring public interest law agencies from around the county to the neighborhood surrounding the USC campus to educate the community about their rights and where they can turn for legal help.

At the conclusion of the OPS orientation, students were sent on a hunt to find the “public service treasures” of USC Law. Armed with a map of the building and biographies of the people they were searching for, the students set off to meet professors, financial aid and events staff and others.

“OPS is the home base for public service, but there are so many more incredible resources in the building that we hope students will take advantage of while they are here,” Barnwell Scott said.

Along the way, students picked up prizes including water bottles, computer brushes, candy, pens and other knickknacks and treats. Students who completed the treasure hunt were entered into a raffle for a $100 gift card grand prize.

Students who want more information about public service opportunities or resources offered by the Office of Public Service may send an e-mail or call (213) 740-9930.

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